Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher Generates Excitement As Potential New SEC Chair

Key Points:

• Trump’s transition team is considering Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher, Paul Atkins, and Robert Stebbins as candidates for SEC chair, with a decision expected soon.
• The crypto industry supports Gallagher, hoping his leadership would reverse current SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s strict crypto regulations.

Donald Trump’s transition team is drawing up a short list of candidates for the top jobs at financial agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, to present to the former president.

Read more: Robinhood Crypto EU Now Supports PEPE Transfers 

Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher Toes the Front of Contenders for the SEC Role

Of those being seriously considered for the SEC chair position, there is Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher, a Republican SEC commissioner from 2011 to 2015, sources told Reuters.

Gallagher has been supported staunchly by cryptocurrency executives who’ve donated millions to Trump’s campaign, in large part because Trump vowed to reform the SEC and oust its current chair, Gary Gensler. He is a Democrat and has found himself unpopular in the crypto community because of his heavy-handed regulatory approach, which according to investors and US-based crypto companies, has crippled the industry’s growth.

Besides Robinhood CLO Dan Gallagher, sources also cited another name: Paul Atkins, a former commissioner at the SEC and the chief executive officer of the consulting firm Patomak Global Partners. He worked with Trump’s transition team in 2016 and was once considered for appointment as the head of the SEC during that period.

The others to be considered are Robert Stebbins, a partner in Willkie Farr & Gallagher, and also a former general counsel of the SEC under Trump’s first term in office.

Crypto Community Demands Shift in SEC Leadership for More Friendly Regulation

As Trump appears to be making an agency reshuffle, the crypto industry is pushing for a more friendly regulatory stance with an SEC chair. Trump promised to embrace Bitcoin and push policies more aligned with crypto interests, a stance that drew significant funding from the sector.

Given that the crypto-friendly Republican SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce was considered by most the front-runner for the seat, the lack of interest by Peirce was unexpected. A Peirce spokesperson did not comment on why she will not pursue the job.